We Were Legends Too
by SunnyInOregon
Summary: "And just by being near you, we were legends too."
1. Chapter 1

We Were Legends Too

Pairing: eventually H/F

Warnings: Slash

Summary: "And just by being near you, we were legends too."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The four men sat quietly in the living room of the new house Face had acquired, each lost in his own thoughts. They had just finished another seemingly impossible case; one where they were greatly outnumbered and out armed but they survived and the bad guys were in jail.

Hannibal Smith struck a match and lit the end of his cigar; a soft sigh caught his attention. He looked up to see his Lieutenant staring at him with a dreamy smile on his lips. Hannibal wondered, not for the first time, what those lips would taste like against his own. He sucked in a deep breath of cigar smoke and tried to clear his mind. His eyes glanced around to the other two men in the room. Murdock was sitting on the floor resting his back against the television stand and contemplating his tennis shoes. BA was leaning back on the couch, his eyes closed and his breathing was deep and even but Hannibal could tell he wasn't asleep. Not yet anyway.

He looked back to his Lieutenant and saw that the man was still staring at him. "Something on your mind, Lieutenant?" Hannibal asked softly.

Face blinked as everyone in the room turned their attention to him. "Sir?" he asked hesitantly.

"You've been staring at me for quite a while now," Hannibal explained. "I thought maybe you had something you wanted to say."

Face grinned. "I was just deep in thought, sir."

"About what?" Hannibal pressed as he continued to suck on his cigar.

The Lieutenants grin faded as he got to his feet and began wandering the room. Hannibal watched the younger man fidget with the knick-knacks and photographs on the shelves.

"Face?" Hannibal said softly.

"Yes sir?" Came the reply.

"You're stalling," Hannibal pointed out.

Face spun about and nervously glanced at each of his friends. Murdock was watching him thoughtfully almost as if he knew what his friend was going to say. BA was frowning in a way that made Face want to hurry up and say what he was going to say. Only Hannibal watched him with a completely open mind; not trying to guess what was in his Lieutenants thoughts.

Face swallowed hard then barely whispered. "You."

Hannibal raised an eyebrow as he removed the cigar from his mouth. "I'm sorry?"

"I said I was thinking about you," he repeated a little louder.

Hannibal frowned thoughtfully and placed the cigar back into his mouth. The gears in his mind were racing as he tried to decide if he wanted to know exactly what his Lieutenant had been thinking about him or not.

"I think about you sometimes too Colonel," Murdock stated interrupting the older mans thoughts.

Face grinned as he watched his friend try to cover an awkward moment that had been in the air.

"Sometimes my thoughts are very impure," Murdock purred in a more feminine voice as he batted his eyes at the Colonel.

Hannibal was trying hard to hold back a grin behind his cigar.

"Fool!" BA interjected. "Shut up! You're ruining a perfectly good moment."

Murdock pouted and wrapped his arms around his chest. "That's it, Mudsucker. I'm not telling you about my thoughts about you."

"Good," BA replied. "That'll keep me from wasting energy punching you through a wall!"

Face had relaxed as he watched the interaction between his friends. He was still smiling when he looked over to see Hannibal watching him. He began to tense up again.

"Do we need to be alone for this discussion?" Hannibal asked.

Again, everyone was looking at Face making him nervous. When the meaning behind Hannibal's words sank in he suddenly came to life. "No! It's not those kinds of thoughts," he explained then grinned cheekily. "Not this time anyway."

Hannibal choked a little on the breath of cigar smoke in his throat. "No teasing Lieutenant," he warned.

"I wouldn't dare," Face replied still grinning. "Do you really want to know what I was thinking about?"

Hannibal thought for a moment before nodding. Face took a deep breath and sat down in the chair he had recently vacated. Murdock leaned forward wrapping his arms around his knees. Everyone was waiting to hear what the younger man had to say.

"Every time we go into a seemingly impossible situation I think that we are never going to make it out alive," Face began. "It seems like we are always fighting an uphill battle. Most of the time it's your fault that we get into the situations we do."

"My fault," Hannibal replied innocently. "What do I do?"

Face snorted as Murdock and BA smiled and shook their heads. "What don't you do?" Face retorted. "You and your devil may care attitude and John Wayne impersonations."

"John Wayne? I've never impersonated John Wayne," Hannibal defended.

"Not knowingly," Face agreed. "But… just like the characters he portrayed you have this… reckless abandonment for safety. You forget that we're just human."

"What are you trying to tell me Lieutenant," Hannibal asked cautiously. He rolled the ever shortening cigar between his thumb and forefinger as he watched the younger man through hooded eyes.

"I'm just trying to tell you what I'm thinking," Face replied calmly. "Sometimes… sometimes I wish I could be more like you. I wish I had the ability to lead men through the gates of hell and back and to have them follow me time and time again knowing exactly what was going to happen and not caring because I was going to get them out no matter what."

"Wow," Hannibal blinked in shock. "That's a pretty tall pedestal you have me on."

"Don't worry Colonel," Murdock smiled. "We knocked over that pedestal a long time ago."

"Thanks Murdock," Hannibal smiled.

"Yeah," Face agreed. "And every time you send me into enemy territory the pedestal gets buried deeper and deeper."

"I remember when I first met you," BA spoke for the first time since Face started his story. "I had been in country for almost nine months and had been hopping from unit to unit when I got assigned to you. Do you remember?"

Hannibal nodded and BA continued. "I was at this hooch with Ray and a few other guys that were in your unit. We were drinking and talking about our CO's. I couldn't believe the nonsense they were saying about you. Then you walked through the door. It 'was' just like John Wayne had walked through the door. There was this aura about you. You were the legend. And there you were and it took my breath away."

Hannibal pursed his lips and thought about the things his men were saying. It sounded preposterous to him and yet…

"It's true Colonel," Murdock broke in. "Anyone who was in Nam for more than a day knew who you were and wished that you were their CO. Hell, It got to a point where I could walk into a bar and never have to pay for a drink the whole night. As long as I was talking about you, they were buying."

BA nodded in agreement as Face took up the conversation. "Especially after we got out of that POW camp," he stated. "Some people thought the stories were too good to be true. But we know they're not. I know you hold the scars of truth upon your back. How many canings did you take in that place Hannibal? How many lives did you save?"

Hannibal was beginning to feel uncomfortable now. He got up from his chair walked over to the window and tossed his stub of a cigar into the dirt below. "I'm just a man guys," he said softly.

"You were a legend Colonel," Murdock insisted. "And standing beside you, we were legends too."

Hannibal once again glanced over his men who were watching him intently. "It's getting late. We all need to turn in." With that said he left the room taking his thoughts and the words of his men with him.


	2. Chapter 2

We Were Legends Too part 2

Pairing: eventually H/F

Warnings: Slash

Summary: "And just by being near you, we were legends too."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Hannibal walked into the room he had claimed as his own and stripped off his shirt. He held it in his hand as he slipped out of his shoes and toed off his socks. As he padded across the room to the dresser he caught sight of himself in the bathroom mirror. Curiosity mixed with melancholy thoughts pushed him into the room.

He turned his back to the mirror and glanced over his shoulder. The faint scars were still there; some deeper than others and a few had faded away altogether. Without bidding his thoughts raced back to a time and place where night melded into day, day into weeks until time meant nothing anymore. He had spent many hours sitting in small metal boxes alone with nothing but his thoughts and the smell of death and anguish in the air.

When he and his men had first arrived at the POW camp he had been introduced to the bite of the canes that the Viet Cong had preferred. As the highest ranking officer, he was expected to keep all of the troops in line or pay the price. His punishments ranged from canings to separation in the sweatboxes to starvation. Most of the time he had said or done something to tick them off but he couldn't help himself; it was just the way he was. They had spent nearly three months in the POW camp when Hannibal saw an opportunity for escape.

He knew he couldn't wait any longer. The Viet Cong had begun to realize that their forms of punishment were not making an impact on him so they had turned to other measures; they began murdering the prisoners in front of him. He had been forced to watch the beheading of three men and the torture and eventual killing of two others. The five men were also officers; two of whom he had met prior to coming to the camp but the names of all five were etched forever in his mind.

He had never told anyone in his unit how the three men had died just that the Viet Cong had killed them. Face had been right when he said Hannibal bore the scars of truth on his back. The younger man didn't know he also carried the burden of guilt. He knew that sometimes his reckless abandonment got them into more trouble then it should. Even as a child he had led his "men" into things they shouldn't have been involved in. It seemed that John "Hannibal" Smith was a born leader and he was a man who took the responsibilities of leadership very seriously.

Hannibal closed his eyes and mentally shook himself. All this introspection was getting him no where. He relieved himself, washed his hands and face and brushed his teeth before retrieving his forgotten shirt from the floor and going back into the bedroom. He removed his pants and underwear after he had removed his belongings from his pockets. He didn't carry much: a small wad of cash, two keys and a pocket knife. A man on the run needs very little in the way of belongings.

He put his things on the bedside table then padded naked to the dresser which had been his original destination. A medium sized duffle bag sat on top of the dresser, Hannibal lay down his clothes then reached into the duffle bag and pulled out a pair of sleeping pants. After slipping on the pants he carefully folded his dirty clothes and placed them into the left side of the duffle bag. This was his life; one bag of clothes and a mind full of memories.

He climbed into bed and turned off the light. He could hear Murdock and BA arguing in the living room, the TV in the background. He couldn't tell if Face was still up or not but he presumed the younger man had followed instructions and had headed to his own room. Face tried hard to be his own man but usually he did follow Hannibal's lead without question; which made Hannibal wonder why.

The younger man was certainly resourceful and intelligent; he could have slipped away from the group and made a life for himself without any chance of being caught. When Face had first joined the unit Hannibal had thought him to be brash and cocky. But after a few days Hannibal realized that Face was just trying to hide his vulnerabilities. Seeing this, Hannibal thought that he was more than physically attractive. Many nights in the POW camp he would awaken to find Face huddled against him.

He wondered now if it had been cold, fear or need which had drawn the man to his side. Loneliness slid over his skin. He hated times like this, times when all he could do was think and wonder what could have been. Life could have been much different. He could have left the Army all those years ago, married a beautiful woman and made a passel of kids. He could have accepted an assignment in the States to train the new recruits that headed to war but no… he had decided to stay in Nam and lead his men into battle. Was it a death wish? Or did he do it just because he was good at it? No use in worrying about it now what was done is done.

It was times like this when he wanted more. He wanted someone to hold who would hold him as well and chase the demons in his mind away. It was times like these when his thoughts turned invariably to his Lieutenant. There was definitely something more going on in the younger mans mind tonight. He had been extremely nervous which was unusual. Hannibal could always tell when Face was nervous; he had a habit of calling his Colonel "Sir", every other sentence. And he was being very flirtatious. Murdock's attempt at being coy was entertaining but Face's flirtation made his stomach flip-flop.

He had realized some years ago that he was attracted to Face in ways that he had been raised to believe were unnatural. However, death and war can change many things in a man's mind. He had observed many indiscretions between men during the war and had been a participant a time or two as well. He wondered if the flirtations were a subtle hint at something more.

He lay in the darkness for a long time listening to the sounds in the living room. After a while he heard BA go to bed followed a few minutes later by Murdock who had wished a pleasant good-night to Face. The TV was off and only the quiet sounds of the night settling in for sleep echoed off the walls. Hannibal slid out of the bed, opened the bedroom door and padded down the hall to the living room.

Face was leaning against the window frame staring out into the night. Hannibal stood noiselessly in the shadow and watched. Face had his shirt unbuttoned a light dusting of blond hair spread across his broad, tan chest. His hair, normally set in perfect position, now looked as if it had been carelessly brushed back more than once. Hannibal's breath caught in his throat. He slowly stepped into the room.

Face turned abruptly at the intrusion. "Hannibal! I thought you were asleep."

Hannibal shrugged as he flopped carelessly on the couch. "Couldn't sleep."

"Oh," Face stated quietly. "Something on your mind?"

Hannibal grinned broadly as his own words were said back to him. "Yes. I was just wondering why you stay. I mean, you could have left us a long time ago and been just fine on your own. You could have built a life for yourself and no one would have known who you were. Why do you stay?"

Face looked at the older man for a moment. "Do you really want to know?"

Hannibal nodded solemnly.

"I fell in love with John Wayne."


	3. Chapter 3

We Were Legends Too part 3

Pairing: eventually H/F

Warnings: Slash

Summary: "And just by being near you, we were legends too."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The room was silent for several minutes; Face watched Hannibal for a reaction as Hannibal sat in quiet contemplation. A soft breeze drifted through the window carrying the smell of dirt and flowers and the lingering scent of sunshine that always warmed the California air.

"Do the others know?" Hannibal asked softly.

Face shrugged. "I think so," he replied. "I mean, we've never talked directly about it. But the idea has been there."

"I see," Hannibal whispered. He stretched his arms across the back of the couch and thoughtfully gazed at the younger man. "What do we do now?"

"Uh… well," Face gaped. "I guess that's up to you. You know how I feel. My future, as always, is in your hands."

"The first thing you have to do is stop thinking of me as some super-hero, larger than life enigma," he pointed out. "Like I said before, I'm just a man. I have feelings, Face. I care about you. I think about you more often than anyone else. My thoughts have drifted to some areas that may be deemed as inappropriate by others. Am I in love with you? Can I stand up and say that I'm in love with you? At this moment; no I can't. But I can say that I'd like to give us a shot."

"Really," Face asked cautiously. Hannibal nodded. Face moved slowly across the room as if any sudden movement would make Hannibal disappear. He gently sat beside the older man on the couch. "I'm not crowding you am I?"

Hannibal grinned and looked down at the six inches of cushion that separated them. He moved his arm from the back of the couch and gently pulled Face to his side. He left his hand on Face's shoulder in a gentle embrace.

"Breathe slower," Hannibal advised. "You're going to hyperventilate."

"I can't," Face stammered as he stared straight ahead. "This is the part in my dreams where you either hit me or you disappear. Then I wake up alone."

"I'm not going to hit you," Hannibal assured him. "And I'm not going to suddenly disappear."

"Promise?" Face asked so softly that Hannibal almost didn't hear.

"I promise," Hannibal stated. As Face turned to look at him, Hannibal leaned over and quickly brushed his lips against his Lieutenants. Both men moaned at the contact and Hannibal carefully intensified the kiss. It was better than he had ever imagined. Face turned to his CO and placed his hand on the older man's chest. The soft skin was warm and smooth covering well toned muscles, strong bones and a pounding heart. Face moaned again as he realized that Hannibal was just as scared and excited as he was.

They stopped kissing but didn't lose contact with their mouths; sharing breath after breath of air. Hannibal brought his left hand up gently moving his fingertips across the skin of the younger mans face. No area was left untouched in this exploration. Face closed his eyes allowing his senses to absorb everything without the censorship of sight.

"You're beautiful Face," Hannibal stated quietly. "Are you sure you want to be with me?"

Face opened his eyes and smiled. "Don't make me go all poetic on you and say how much I want to be with you. Just accept it."

Hannibal grinned a little himself and kissed Face softly once more. The two men shifted into a prone position on the couch; holding each other close. They relaxed in their embrace and eventually drifted off to sleep.

About an hour later, Murdock emerged from his room. He stepped soundlessly down the hall and into the bright living room. He smiled at the sight of the sleeping men on the couch. After turning off the lights, he grabbed a light blanket from the hallway closet and covered the two men. He stepped back and softly spoke, "Legends live where legends roam. And from the night a new legend is born. I'll follow you anywhere Colonel but I'm not in love with you. Or maybe I am."


	4. Chapter 4

We Were Legends Too part 4

Pairing: eventually H/F

Warnings: Slash

Summary: "And just by being near you, we were legends too."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Hannibal stood on the deck, his hands resting lightly on the railing. The morning sun was behind him and not quite high enough to chase away the shadows. The ocean breeze floated in and ruffled his short silver hair. He twisted his neck to the left then right trying to loosen the muscles. He had to admit that sleeping on the couch with Face hadn't been one of his brightest ideas but it was probably the most pleasant.

"Orange juice, Colonel?"

He looked down to see a tanned hand holding glass of bright orange liquid. "Thank you," he stated as he took the proffered glass. Strong warm hands slid up his back and firmly began to massage his neck. He moaned as a particularly sore muscle was loosened.

"Does that feel good, Colonel?"

"Face," he replied irritated. "Don't call me Colonel."

The hands stopped moving. "Sir?"

"Call me Hannibal. Better yet, when we are alone, call me John. 'Colonel' is reserved for when we are on missions. Got it?"

"Yes sir," Face replied with a mock salute behind Hannibal's back. "Should I tell the others?"

"Do you want to be turned over my knee?"

Face's grin faded and he swallowed hard. "So that's just for me?" he whispered.

Hannibal nodded. "I prefer that my lovers not call me Colonel when we're alone."

"Ok," Face agreed. A slow smile spread across his face. "You can call me anything you want."

Hannibal grunted. "I'll think of something appropriate. Are you going to go back to the massaging thing or are you just going to leave your hands on my neck all day?"

"You like that?" Face asked softly as he began teasing the tender muscles with his fingers.

"Oh yes," Hannibal moaned. He placed the glass on the railing then grabbed the rail and held on tightly.

"John," Face moaned in response. "When you moan like that it turns me on."

Hannibal grinned and turned around. He pulled Face tightly to his chest. "Call me John again," he ordered his blue eyes twinkling.

"John," Face moaned as Hannibal pressed their mouths tightly together. Face slid his fingers into Hannibal's hair caressing the back of the older man's head. He parted his lips allowing Hannibal's tongue room to explore.

Hannibal slid his hands down Face's back to cup his ass and pull him closer. He could feel Face's hardness pressing into his own. He groaned again and deepened the kiss until they were forced to part for air.

"Face," Hannibal panted. "I've never wanted another man as much as I want you."

"Let's go to your room," Face suggested with a grin.

Hannibal laughed. "Easy, son. We have plenty of time for that. Let's just get more comfortable with each other first."

"John," Face said seriously. "If I can't call you Colonel, you can't call me son. It feels weird."

Hannibal looked thoughtfully at Face for a moment. "You're right. It feels weird from this side too. Can I call you Baby?"

Face frowned. "I like it and yet I don't. You can call me that for now but I swear if Murdock or BA hear it there will be serious consequences."

Hannibal leaned over and quickly pecked Face on the lips. "Agreed."

"Are you two gonna make out on the deck all day?" BA interjected from the doorway. Both turned still embracing to look at their friend. "Mr. Lee called. He has some information for us about a new client. And breakfast is ready so hurry up."

The pair watched BA turn from the door and disappear into the darkened interior. They turned back to each other and silently looked into each others eyes.

"How long is this going to go on Hannibal?" Face asked finally as he rested his head on Hannibal's shoulder.

"I don't know," Hannibal answered honestly. He stroked Face's hair as he held the younger man. "I only know that I don't want to go to prison. I shudder to think what would happen to you in a place like that. It's bad enough that Murdock has to stay at the VA. I know you can take care of yourself but things happen and sometimes there is nothing you can do about it. Besides, I have a fear of enclosed spaces." 

"Really?" Face asked disbelieving. He raised his head to look at Hannibal's face.

Hannibal nodded. "I don't know why but it's the only thing that really scares me."

"In Nam you spent a lot of time in the sweat boxes, how did you cope?"

Hannibal pulled away from Face and moved back to the railing. He reached for a cigar then realized he had none on him. He took a deep breath and slowly released it. Face watched the tormented man for a moment before moving closer and placing a gentle hand on his back.

"John?"

"I don't think I'm ready to talk about that," Hannibal said softly.

"That's fine," Face stated. They stood quietly for a moment. "I feel like I should be sharing something important with you right now."

"You are," Hannibal replied.

"What?" Face asked confused.

"The morning sunshine, the gentle breeze and this…" Hannibal kissed him hard on the mouth again. Face pressed back and turned to wrap his arms around the older man's waist.

"Guys! BA's getting really hungry and he's growling a lot. You think you can put this off until later and come have breakfast? I hate it when the mudsucker gets hungry cuz then he gets mean and he takes it out on me."

Hannibal and Face broke their kiss. "Alright Murdock. We're coming," Hannibal promised.

"Don't make me come back out here," Murdock warned as he turned from the door. Face started to follow his friend but stopped short when Hannibal pulled him back and kissed him once again.

Face groaned as Hannibal broke the kiss. "Great, now I'm going to have a hard-on at breakfast."

Hannibal grinned. "Sorry. You just taste so good. I think I'm already hooked."

Face looked at Hannibal. "Are you on the jazz?"

Hannibal's grin got wider. "Maybe."

A slow grin spread across the younger man's face.

"What?" Hannibal asked cautiously.

"I think I'm going to really enjoy this relationship," Face answered.

"I hope so Face," Hannibal replied solemnly. "I hope I can show you what a real relationship is like. Well as real as it can get for two men... on the run… with two other men… well you get the idea. Right?"

Face laughed. He nodded. "I get the idea."

"Good," Hannibal said as turned towards the house. "I'm hungry and I need a cigar and a cup of coffee. Not particularly in that order."

Face paused for a moment and watched the older man walk away from him.

"Are you coming?" Hannibal asked from the doorway stirring Face from his thoughts.

"Yeah," Face replied. "I was just enjoying the view."

"Stop staring at my ass and let's eat," Hannibal ordered. Face grabbed the forgotten glass of orange juice and followed Hannibal into the house.

The end


End file.
